


Brain Freeze

by Faequeen40



Series: Rhapsody [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Addressing Lance's Propensity for Blowing Himself Up for Other People, Cryo Brain, Denial, First Kiss, Getting Together, M/M, cryo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-04
Updated: 2017-10-04
Packaged: 2019-01-09 03:26:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12267927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Faequeen40/pseuds/Faequeen40
Summary: Being in the healing pod does weird stuff to Lance's head...like help him realize his feelings for Keith.Song Prompt from Tumblr!





	Brain Freeze

**Author's Note:**

> Back at it again with the song prompts!  
> This one was fun to write but mostly because I love Pidge being a little shit.  
> Enjoy!

The chill of the healing pod never seemed to really leave his bones after a long enough stint and Lance hated the situation. The cryo always made him feel weak and achy, joints stiff and complaining with even the slightest motion.

He had no idea how Coran had all but pounced out of his after _ten thousand years_ inside one. Just being it for a few days made him unwilling to do much more than walk.

That wasn’t even to mention the haze it left in his head for a while afterward. He wanted nothing more than to sit and stare at the walls, brain struggling to thaw and process the world.

His cryo brain thoughts always seemed to throw him for a loop.

Like now, for instance.

Here he was, minding his own business, sitting in the corner of the training deck like a good Paladin. The idea of doing anything more than observing had made his limbs feel like lead and the others had nodded in understanding.

Cryo was hard on all of them.

But _anyway_ , minding his own business, trying to watch and keep up with the general flow of everything going on. And then his cryo brain decides that watching Keith in particular seemed like the better idea.

Not that he can entirely disagree. Keith being his _eternal rival_ and whatnot. Gotta keep up on what he’s doing.

It sucked a bit to see how well everyone was handling themselves without them, Keith especially. Sure, he was more of a ranged fighter but he thought that they might have struggled a bit without his backup.

Was he really such a fifth wheel? (Seventh if you counted Allura and Coran…)

He pulled out of self-deprecating thoughts with a grimace as the gladiator managed to get one over on Hunk, the resounding thwack against the meat of Hunk’s shoulder making even Shiro wince.

“End simulation!” Shiro called, the Yellow and Green Paladins visibly sagging in relief at his pronouncement.

Only Keith seemed put off by it. “We were still in the middle of the level!”

“We’ve been training for a while now, Keith.” Shiro explained, tone firm, “It’s important to take a break. Plus, we’re not at peak efficiency right now. Lance still has a few hours before the cryo really wears off.”

Keith mumbled something under his breath that made Shiro frown deeply and Lance watched almost idly, the cryo funk still numbing his brain in the weirdest ways.

Ways that really liked to point out how nice Keith’s hair looked after he was training for a while, all tousled and mussed out of his original style.

And how nice the shape of his body was from the back, muscles moving in supple rolls under that black t-shirt. He wondered what they’d feel like under his hands, what they’d look like uncovered…

What.

What the fuck.

He sat up as abruptly as he dared, a sharp frown pulling at his mouth just as Hunk and Pidge plopped down on either side of him.

“Has your brain come back from freeze land yet?” Pidge grinned, “Well, as much as it really can, considering…”

“I think I want to bone Keith.” He blurted, the words making Hunk spit water beside him.

_What the fuck._

“I did not mean to say that.” He rescinded quickly, his voice quickly lost to Hunk’s sputtering and Pidge’s incredulous laughter.

“About time you figured that out.” She chuckled, putting her hand over her mouth when Shiro looked over curiously, Keith copying the expression as he crossed his arms over his chest, “The sexual tension between the two of you has been killing me. Rivalry my ass.”

“Language.” Shiro called, turning back to where he had been conversing with Keith.

A Keith that kept glancing over and catching Lance’s eye. He looked perturbed and a bit worried, the expression somewhat foreign on his face. Lance’s addled brain wanted nothing more than to go over and curl around him until that frown disappeared from his face and that unsettled look left his eyes.

His very pretty blue violet eyes. They almost sparkled in the light from the training deck and Lance turned his head to the side to see them better.

…Zero to one hundred real quick there, cryo brain.

“Funny thing is about the whole ‘cryo brain’ thing.” Pidge baited, leaning back against the wall smugly while Hunk smacked against his chest, one eye screwed up as he recovered from almost taking water into his lungs, “Not really a different brain wave. Your conscious brain isn’t really awake now so all your subconscious thoughts and feelings are free to run wild. Which means, you have a thing for Keith.”

“Do not.”

“You are literally staring at him like sad puppy right now. Like I almost want to hug you.”

“Don’t have a thing for Keith.”

“Denial is a river in Egypt, Lance.”

Lance huffed a breath and tore his gaze away from an increasingly concerned Keith to glare at Pidge. “I’m not in denial.” He sniffed, “I’m just in love with the shape of him.”

“You know you said that out loud right?”

Lance could feel his face flushing, embarrassment finally starting to hit him in full force. “Oh quiznack, what? Why were you letting me talk? Why even let me in here?”

Damn cryo brain.

“There he is.” Pidge sighed, “Seriously, dude. Please do something about yourself. Every time you come out of cryo, I can almost smell the pining.”

“Pidge, what the French? Seriously.” Hunk coughed, “Could you have waited to start interrogating him until I finished drinking my water?”

“Did you die?”

“No?”

“Then it’s okay.” Pidge nodded, “And honestly, I want them to stop doing this dancing around each other thing. I’m getting dizzy watching them go in circles.”

“Them?” Lance frowned, looking to where Keith was all but ignoring Shiro to continue staring at them, “What are you talking about?”

“I may actually strangle you.” Pidge breathed, “Just think about it.”

Pidge climbed to her feet with a huff, Hunk following after her, a grimace on his face. “Are you okay?” Lance reached out, catching Hunk’s arm clumsily.

“All good, Lance.” Hunk smiled, “Just focus on getting better. You get blown up way more than is probably healthy.”

“Blown up?”

Hunk frowned at him and turned fully, looking Lance over with a careful eye. “Yeah, buddy. You jumped in front of Keith on our last mission. He wasn’t paying attention and set off a mine. You got him out of the way but took most of the brunt yourself.” Hunk explained, “You don’t remember?”

Lance searched his memories, doing his best to push past the cryo funk and apparently the residual fogginess of getting caught in an explosion once more. He remembered landing on the planet they’d received a signal from but after that it was a blur of color and fear.

He’d been so unbelievably scared.

But what for? Keith?

In the light of his currently abating cryo brain, he could see it. Mullet brain stepping on something that he probably shouldn’t have and the bomb igniting before anyone could move.

Except Lance, of course. Because Lance was always watching.

He didn’t want anything to happen to Keith.

So he’d moved. Moved without thinking really. He’d like to say that he knew Keith was more valuable in a fight than him but…he didn’t want the Red Paladin to be hurt.

“Was he okay?”

“Was he…Lance, you almost died.” Hunk grimaced, “If Keith’s Lion wasn’t as fast as she is, we might not have made it back in time to get you into a pod.”

“That definitely explains why he keeps looking over here like I’m going to keel over.” Lance observed dryly, his stomach dropping at the thought of worrying the others, “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t worry, bro. I get it. Just stop trying to kill yourself by being a hero.” Hunk said tightly, blinking away at the sheen over his eyes, “We’d be really messed up without you.”

Tightness gripped at Lance’s throat and he nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

He must have missed a lot while he was laid up in the cryo chamber. Lance hadn’t really thought of himself as irreplaceable on the team, not really since the beginning but with the way everyone was acting…

Cryo brain or not, it felt good. It felt good to be wanted and appreciated. Shiro had acknowledged that they weren’t at full capacity without him. Pidge had _almost_ wanted to hug him, which was phenomenal in Lance’s book.

And Keith… _Keith_ was worried about him.

Maybe his cryo brain was on to something. Maybe he did feel something a bit, well, _more_ for his rival.

Something that rivalry didn’t really cover. Something a little beyond that.

Hunk padded off to where Pidge had inserted herself into the conversation between Keith and Shiro, the hum of voices providing a soft background to Lance’s dawning revelation.

If it were possible, he might have to thank his cryo brain.

Which _honestly_ wasn’t the weirdest thought he’d had today.

Lance liked Keith.

His thoughts ran a bit lukewarm at that thought. More than like?

Probably. He did jump in front of a bomb for him.

A snort escaped him and the remaining Paladins turned back to him with relieved smiles. “Yeah, I think he’ll be okay.” Pidge hummed, “Anyway, come on, Shiro. Leave things to fall how they may.”

Lance could see Keith frown deeply at the other Paladins, eyebrows furrowed hard. “What are you talking about? He’s over there laughing to himself. Am I the only one worried about that?”

“You should go check on him if you’re so worried.” Shiro suggested, exchanging a look with Pidge that Lance would definitely associate with trouble if his mind wasn’t still struggling with cryo brain.

The Red Paladin could only huff and stomp over to where Lance grinned to himself, a warm feeling fizzling in his previously cold chest.

_Love._ That sounded nice.

“Oi. What are you laughing at over here?” Keith huffed, standing in front of Lance with his arms crossed tightly over his chest.

Lance could only stare up at the object of his affection idly, brain steadily clearing. It wasn’t fair for him to be so pretty, even after working up a frankly disgusting amount of sweat fighting against the gladiator.

“Just my brain.”

“What remains of it, I guess.” Keith retorted, his voice sharp.

Lance frowned and Keith plopped down in front of him, eyes tracing over his face curiously. “I’m sorry if I worried you.” Lance said at last, turning his head to the side so he didn’t have to see Keith’s expression.

In his haze, he’d forgotten about one small detail. Lance hadn’t exactly been really friendly in the past. In fact he’d been nigh hostile.

He couldn’t expect Keith to react any differently, even if Lance wanted him to.

Silence reigned and Lance sneaked a peek back at Keith’s face only to recoil at the sheer volume of emotion crossing it. He turned back incredulously and his hands raised halfway as if to comfort him when Keith’s eyes began to tear up, the impending tears turning the color to something ethereal.

“Worried me?” Keith hissed, “Lance you almost died in my arms. I didn’t think I was going to make it. I didn’t think…Lance, don’t ever do that again.”

“I can’t promise that.”

Keith blinked in surprise, tears rolling down his cheeks before he surged forward, hands grabbing the lapels of Lance’s jacket as he searched his face, a bit of desperation in his face. “Why not? What’s so important that you can’t promise you won’t take care of yourself? Why?”

“Because I love you.” Lance blurted, once again groaning internally.

He couldn’t even blame cryo brain for that one.

The Red Paladin had frozen at his admission, eye searching his face incredulously. “You…you aren’t lying.” Keith breathed, “Lance….what the fuck.”

“That wasn’t quite the response I was expecting.”

“What did you want me to do, fall into your arms and wax poetic over your romantic overture? You just told me you’d do something like this again!” Keith growled, hands curling tightly into his jacket, “You think I want you to kill yourself for me? If you really loved me, you’d fight beside me!”

“I do!” Lance replied, a grunt pulling itself from his chest as Keith snarled, “It isn’t my fault that you don’t pay attention. Do you think I want to throw myself into danger all the time? I can’t help that I fell in love with an idiot.”

Keith only paused a moment before lurching forward, pressing his lips hotly to Lance’s. Lance reciprocated without missing a beat, hands curling around Keith’s shoulders to press against those beautiful muscles in his back, the corded feel beneath his fingers making his grin against Keith’s mouth.

The boy in his arms pulled back briefly, a grin of his own fighting to make its way onto his face. “Guess I couldn’t help falling in love with an idiot either.”

Lance leaned their foreheads together and chuckled, Keith’s grin finally winning the battle to curl across his face before he abruptly frowned. “But we will be talking about your pattern of jumping in front of bombs for people.”

“Whatever you say babe.”

Snickering behind them made Lance look up quizzically, his frown deepening when he saw Shiro handing Pidge several small coins. Pidge winked at him dramatically before turning to leave from the room.

“Don’t do anything you wouldn’t want to explain to Coran!” She called behind her, cackling at all the sputtering.

All in all it was good to be back.

Even with cryo brain.

**Author's Note:**

> And there we have it, folks!  
> This particular song prompt was written to "Shape of You" by Ed Sheeran.  
> Until next time!


End file.
